1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to apparatuses for attaching a device to a vehicle. More particularly, the invention concerns an apparatus that is selectively attachable to a vehicle, for transporting a device (for example a cooking device), and positioning the device in an orientation that permits access to the vehicle (for example, while cooking).
2. Description of Related Art
Outdoor leisure and recreational activities such as camping, fishing, picnicking at the beach or a park, cookouts, road trips, and tailgate parties at sporting events have become increasingly popular. Often, people are transported to these types of outdoor activities in a vehicle such as a truck, pickup truck, sport utility vehicle, or recreational vehicle. Frequently, people partaking in these mobile outdoor activities desire a freshly cooked hot meal.
One way of cooking a hot meal is to build a campfire and cook the meal over the fire. However, building a campfire can require a lot of effort, and creates a risk of fires. Also, campfires are not permitted in many areas. Hot meals can also be cooked on a public barbeque at a campground or picnic area. However, public barbeques are frequently dirty, are in a state of disrepair, or are not available.
Another way of cooking a hot meal is to bring a barbeque in the vehicle, set it up at the camping, picnicking, or tailgating site, and cook the meal on the barbeque. However, transporting the barbeque in the vehicle uses valuable space inside the vehicle, and further, the barbeque cannot be put back into the vehicle until it cools down after cooking.
Another approach has been to permanently attach a barbeque to the exterior of a vehicle. However, it is often undesirable to always have a barbeque attached to the exterior of the vehicle. For example, there is a risk of theft, the barbeque is exposed to the elements for a long period of time, and parking can be problematic.
Yet another approach is to attach a barbeque to a trailer hitch on the rear of the vehicle. Although this has the advantage of permitting removal of the barbeque from the vehicle, this approach has the disadvantage of blocking access to the rear doors or hatch of the vehicle when the barbeque is attached. In summary, all of the known ways of cooking a hot meal when partaking in mobile outdoor activities have proven inadequate.
Additionally, known ways of transporting items other than cooking devices also often block access to the rear doors or hatch of the vehicle. Furthermore, known apparatuses that attach to the rear of a vehicle for transporting items, often do not permit simultaneous use of a trailer ball hitch, thereby preventing the user from towing an object, such as a boat or trailer, while using the apparatus.